i'd rather be baking

Usually I’m a cereal-and-yogurt kind of girl when it comes to breakfast, but on the weekends, that tends to go out the window. Sometimes it’s me in the kitchen and sometimes it’s Ryan, but at least once each weekend we like to do breakfast right. After all, it is the most important meal of the day.

This beauty started with a lot of stale bread. I started collecting the “bum ends” (as my boss refers to them) of our sandwich bread at work during an exceptionally busy week. We use this really great oatmeal applesauce sandwich bread, but sometimes the end pieces are too thin or misshapen to sell. So I like to take them home. Good bread is good bread, ugly or not.

As I saw the bum ends accumulating from about a zillion sandwiches, I started having visions of bread pudding. So naturally, I consulted the Pioneer Woman. And here we ended up. With a freaking fantastic breakfast.

Baked French Toast
Adapted from The Pioneer Woman

So yes, I started with Ree’s version but definitely made some (fairly substantial) tweaks. I wanted a lighter, healthier version and mine was still crazy delicious. One great thing about this is that it comes together in about ten minutes and then can sit in the refrigerator overnight, leaving you free in the morning to laze about while it bakes in the oven.

For the french toast:
1/2 loaf bread of your choice (stale is totally fine)
4 eggs
1 cup fat-free milk
1/4 cup fat-free yogurt (I used vanilla)
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

For the crumb topping:
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Pinch salt
1/4 cup butter or margarine, cut into pieces

Lightly grease an 8×8 inch pan with cooking spray and set aside. Tear bread into roughly 1-inch chunks (or cut into cubes) and distribute evenly throughout pan.

Mix together eggs, milk, cream, sugar, and vanilla. Pour evenly over bread. Cover tightly and store in the fridge several hours or overnight.

n a separate bowl, mix flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Add nutmeg if desired. Add butter pieces and but into the dry mixture until mixture resembles fine pebbles. Store in a plastic bag in the fridge.

When you’re ready to bake the casserole, preheat oven to 350°F. Remove casserole from oven and sprinkle crumb mixture over the top. Bake for 45 minutes for a softer, more bread pudding texture. Bake 1 hour or more for a firmer, less liquid texture.

Scoop out individual portions. Top with butter (if desired) and drizzle with maple syrup.